Is this really a ghost propping up the bar of a Stansted pub?

WHISKEY, gin and vodka may not be the only spirits propping up the bar of a Stansted pub after a chance photo appeared to show a ghost-like figure lurking among its regulars.

But the Stansted resident got more than he bargained for when he looked at the picture for the first time a few days ago.

"I didnt have time to look for the picture after Id taken it as I was really busy, so I put the phone in my pocket and forgot all about it," said Josh. "I only looked at it after I took another picture and saw it there."

He continued: "It was a bit spooky I thought it might have just been distorted at first but it looks like a Death Eater from Harry Potter or something.

"Im into ghosts so it was interesting to see. I've tried taking another photo since but there was nothing there."

This is not the first sign of ghostly goings-on at the family-run Station Road pub.

Joint landlord Paul Moore, 52, told how glasses nowhere near the edge often fall off the shelves of their own accord but very rarely smash.

"A few months ago we had one guy leave his hotel room in the middle of the night because he was scared stiff of something," he said.

Even non-believers have admitted experiencing things out of the ordinary at the popular watering hole, parts of which are believed to date back to the 16th century. Bar manager Peter Stock was spooked by something in the cellar and a regular customer said they had seen a "Victorian lady" walk past.

Paul, who has worked at the pub for 17 years continued: "Im a believer in it all Ive never seen anything myself but Ive felt a presence."

The latest development has proved a real talking point among the pubs customers.

"Everyone had an opinion on it," said Paul. "Some people said the photo had been tampered with but a photographer looked at it and said it hadnt been. Josh wouldnt know how to do it.

"We dont know what it is but its very strange."

According to Paul, several mediums from nearby Stansted Hall - home to world-renowned Arthur Findley College for the Advancement of Spiritualism and Psychic Sciences - have been to the pub over the years and said theres a lot of energy there.

Paul concluded: "Its not just bottled spirits weve got here! Im not worried by it though its only the living that can hurt you."

* Essex Business School are currently conducting a survey about supernatural experiences in the workplace to find out how they affect staff morale and productivity.